Timed ticketed entry for Glacier brings mixed reactions

Glacier National Park’s decision to implement timed ticketed entry next summer drew mixed reviews from visitors and stakeholders, though officials say it will help further reduce congestion.  

The changes will include designated time blocks for the west entrance of the Going-to-the-Sun Road and the North Fork area of the park. This means when a park visitor purchases a vehicle reservation ticket on Recreation.gov, they will choose from various times to enter the park throughout the day. Though they can’t enter earlier than their designated time, there is no limit on how long people can stay in the park for the rest of the day, according to park officials.  

Visitors will still be able to enter without a vehicle reservation through the St. Mary and Two Medicine entrances. And Glacier National Park spokeswoman Gina Icenoggle said officials aren’t planning on implementing ticketed entry in Many Glacier next year due to the construction happening in the Swiftcurrent area that would remove visitor parking. 

“Parking at the hotel will be mostly utilized by hotel guests and visitors with commercial service reservations for boating and horseback riding. We are still working on a plan to provide additional access for visitors during construction. However, we are leaving all options on the table at this time,” Icenoggle said in an email.  

Superintendent Dave Roemer said in a statement that park officials are hoping timed entry on the west side of the Going-to-the-Sun Road will minimize congestion, optimize visitor arrival and improve visitor experiences.  

Icenoggle said timed entry has been shown to be a valuable tool elsewhere, including Rocky Mountain National Park and Arches National Park. Though each park is unique, she said they regularly share information regarding managing access through ticketing or timed entry.  

She said by spreading out park arrivals and entries across several time blocks, they should be able to reduce congestion and wait times at the west entrance.  

“We're keeping the same basic structure as we did last year — which worked very well — but hoping that some fine-tuning in arrivals and entries can smooth out the experience,” she said.  

Locals chimed in about the news last week, like Jacob O’Brien of Ferndale, who said he thinks the changes are a bad idea that makes visiting the park a confusing and less enjoyable experience for locals and visitors alike. He said he understands the need to reduce congestion, but to “limit people to a certain time slot is asking for issues.”  

“Unfortunate things happen all the time and there are countless reasons for missing your time slot. For example, a flat tire, a missed alarm or unexpected construction. When people do miss their time slot, are they expected to just turn around or wait 'til 3 p.m.? That will cause a lot of angry confrontations,” O’Brien said.  

Joanna Adams is a Kalispell resident and president of Public Land Creatives, which advocates for commonsense measures and access to public lands. She said her biggest concern with the pilot system is that it has changed every year, which is confusing for visitors.  

“I do not like the permitted entry system as it doesn’t seem to have solved the issue of congestion, but if the park has to keep it, I think only ticketing the Sun Road would be more helpful or switching over to ticketing parking at Logan Pass and Avalanche Lake. Many tourists would be happy to just drive through and not park,” she said. 

She said she’s concerned the pilot period is too much of “an experiment.” 

“How many years can they 'pilot' it without giving people a sense of stability and public input? It started in 2021,” Adams said.  

The park had a public comment period in 2022 about ticketed entry, which informed decisions for the 2023 season, including no longer requiring ticketed entry on the east side of the Going-to-the-Sun Road and Two Medicine.   

Summer Quist of Creston said other states with heavily frequented national parks benefit from a state sales tax, which can help offset the cost of maintaining infrastructure in gateway communities. Because Montana lacks a sales tax, she said there is little taxable financial contribution from out-of-state visitors.  

She said even though “locals footed the bill” for the park, they enjoyed unfettered access until the pilot vehicle reservation system was put in place.  

“The newest change just adds insult to injury by now adding time constraints. I hear from locals all the time that they haven't been to the park in years now or no longer have long-standing family reunions and other traditions there,” she said.  

She said because of the high rates of visitation in Glacier, particularly during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, she understands why officials are doing what they can to curb congestion. But she would like to see access for locals expanded, perhaps by showing a Montana driver’s license or ID.  

U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke, who has been vocal about Glacier's reservation system, blasted the change to time-entry.

“[It’s] a step in the opposite direction and unsurprising the activists at the NPS would jam this out after the election,” Zinke said in a statement to the Hungry Horse News. “Rationing access to the park is not the answer to the problem. The answer is developing a transportation system that is reliable, functional and enhances the park experience, coupled with bolstering the trail system. Parks are for the American people, not a select few radical bureaucrats. I look forward to working with the Trump administration to correct the ongoing rationing of public lands by unelected bureaucrats.”

In the past, Zinke has carried legislation that would defund Glacier’s reservation system, while requiring the Park Service to look at alternatives, like increased parking outside of the park and more shuttles to reduce traffic. 

However, many who work closely with the park see the continued tweaks to the system as a good thing. Glacier Guides and Montana Raft owner and manager Denny Gignoux said he likes many of the changes announced for 2025, including having ticketed entry start at 7 a.m. instead of 6 a.m. He deemed it beneficial because there wouldn’t be as early of a rush to get in before it starts, which also gives the park’s wildlife a little more peace and quiet during a time of day they are moving around.  

“As far as having time slots, I think that that is probably good also because it'll help spread out people throughout the day. Instead of everybody getting the ticket and then planning out their morning, which usually has everybody just showing up right at 10 ... The park is encouraging people to spread out a little bit,” Gignoux said.  

He said he believes the park will be flexible with the timed slots, but also that visitors can find ample things to do in the park outside of the 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. ticketed entry if they lack a vehicle reservation.  

Glacier National Park Conservancy Executive Director Doug Mitchell said balancing the core mission of the National Park System is no easy task for those in charge. 

He said The Organic Act, which created the park system, directs the National Park Service to “conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wildlife therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.”

“That's a really hard mandate to meet when visitation now averages over 3 million visitors a year," Mitchell said. “With that in mind, I think park leadership is doing a terrific job using visitor data, public input and experiences in other parks to meet this challenge.” 

Discover Kalispell Executive Director Diane Medler said though it can sometimes be confusing for local businesses to explain new changes every year, it’s good that park officials are listening to feedback and making changes accordingly.  

“They've shifted the dates based on how busy the park is. So, it starts later in June and goes until later in September ... I think that the time entry, although it's another thing that will be a little confusing to people this year, ultimately is going to make for a better experience,” Medler said.  

She said Glacier National Park officials are working toward a better visitor experience while doing what they can to protect park resources, which is their mandate.  

Icenoggle said more information about the time blocks for ticketed entry will be released ahead of the summer but could not provide a timeline. 

More information about Glacier’s pilot vehicle reservation system can be found at nps.gov/glac.